Chapter 412: The guest from the county city

Lian Fang Qing was getting more and more courageous. Her eyes lit up and she smiled sweetly at her sister, saying: “Sister, go back first! I can manage things here alone. Besides, Xiao Hui is with me!”

“How can I leave you? Nonsense!” Lian Fang Zhou laughed. This little girl! Could it be that she dared to let Xiao Hui bite people?”

After thinking about it for a moment, Lian Fang Zhou called Madam Sun from the nearby cotton field and asked her to accompany Lian Fang Qing.

Madam Sun naturally agreed.

After explaining the delivery process clearly, Lian Fang Zhou hurried home.

When she arrived, there was a strange woman sitting inside. She was about forty years old, fair-skinned, and wearing a flat bun with gold and silver jewelry. When she spoke, her words were gentle and she had a smile on her face.

The dark red jacquard trimmed, lotus pattern of her satin round-neck robe and the dark green embroidered, gold flecked pattern of her satin pleated skirt showed that she came from a wealthy family.

Behind her, there stood two maids dressed in sapphire blue shirts with long white skirts.

The woman was chatting with Third Aunt when Lian Fang Zhou came in. As soon as Third Aunt saw her, she stood up and smiled: “Oh, Fang Zhou! You’re back! This is the wife of Boss Wang who owns the Silk and Satin shop in the city. She’s come to find you!”

Silk and Satin Shop? Boss Wang?

Lian Fang Zhou’s expression changed slightly and her eyebrows rose.

She had never met this woman, but wasn’t Boss Wang the same one that Madam Qiao had tried to sell her to last year?

After this matter was settled in front of Zhang Li Zheng and the village elders, no one had gossiped and Third Aunt did not know about it.

Lian Fang Zhou looked at Madam Wang with vigilance.

Madam Wang smiled and said softly: “So this is Miss Lian? She is so beautiful! Indeed, no worse than the ladies of the city.”

“No!” Third Aunt said proudly, “I’m not boasting when I say our Fang Zhou is not only good looking but also very capable! Not to mention women, ten men couldn’t compare to her!”

These words were a bit much, so Madam Wang smiled without answering.

“It turns out to be Madam Wang, I’ve really come late.” Lian Fang Zhou said politely to Madam Wang. “I don’t know if there is something wrong for Madam Wang to visit our humble house? If there is, please tell me straight! No need to be polite!”

“Miss Lian is really quick to talk!” Madam Wang said with a forced smile, clearly feeing Lian Fang Zhou’s hostility.

“Yes, yes! No need to ask outside, our Fang Zhou has always had a straightforward temperament.” Third Aunt, who didn’t know the inside story and could not smell the gunpowder, chuckled.

Lian Fang Zhou smiled at Third Aunt: “Third aunt, please step out for a moment. I think Madam Wang has something to tell me.”

Third Aunt’s smile disappeared. “Oh,” she said, disappointed. While walking out, she muttered: “It’s always like this! So many things being kept secret…”

Madam Wang watched Third Aunt back and smiled at Lian Fang Zhou: “Your Third Aunt is really straight-hearted. There are not many people like this nowadays, right?”

“Yes.” Lian Fang Zhou agreed, nodding: “It’s more common to speak face-to-face and keep a set of knives behind their backs. People often stab each other with a smile, saying hello if nothing has happened. At least, this is the case for other families. Our family is not like this.”

Madam Wang froze, her smile bitter. This girl’s tongue was so sharp!

Originally, she thought this girl would just be an ignorant girl from the countryside who was lucky enough to have some connections to the Su family. Now it seemed that the words she had prepared could not be said.

Even if she did say them, they would not be useful…

Madam Wang looked at her two maids. “You two, guard outside the door.”

The two maids bowed in unison and slowly retreated.

Seeing them go out, Madam Wang sighed in the direction of Lian Fang Zhou and smiled bitterly: “I can’t blame Miss Lian for being angry. What happened last year was indeed our family’s mistake. Miss Lian doesn’t need to worry, that bunch of people, they have been dealt with. That matter was clearly the design of Hua Jin Tao’s cheap maid. Our family’s master was furious and has already demoted her to a rough servant, which is the punishment she deserves. No need to be angry. Ordinarily, I should have come to apologize to Miss Lian long ago but—”

Madam Wang smiled embarrassedly: “My body is useless and I have been recuperating in the countryside for more than half a year. My health has been intermittently good and bad but now it has slightly improved, so I rushed to come. Miss Lian, what happened last year, I’m very sorry! Please, Miss Lian, please accept these gifts.”

She glanced at the three to four gift boxes stacked on the table next to her and smiled at Lian Fang Zhou: “This one is a fine mink fur and these contain brightly colored cloth. The last two boxes have first-class bird’s nests and white mushrooms. These are to make amends, please don’t dislike them!”

Lian Fang Zhou also glanced at the boxes: “This is all good stuff, how could I dare to dislike them? It’s just that there is no conflict and no apologies. The matter of last year has long been over. If it wasn’t for you, Madam Wang, mentioning it, I would have almost forgot! Now that you are like this, it seems that I was too cautious. Therefore, I won’t accept these things and I will not accept Madam Wang’s apologies.”

Madam Wang listened to her direct refusal without the slightest change in expression. If she had less control, the reluctant smile on her face would have long disappeared.

In fact, Madam Wang was so furious she couldn’t breathe.

Good! Now that you’ve climbed up the Su family, you think you can show off your strength in front of me? If it wasn’t for the orders of my family’s master, do you think I would come to this poor, pathetic house in the countryside?!

Who do you think you are! Trying to act like a gracious lady!

She was so angry that she didn’t stop to think that, if she had such an encounter as Lian Fang Zhou had with the Wang family, she would not be as gracious as Lian Fang Zhou.

Suppressing the anger in her heart, Madam Wang forced herself to smile: “Since Miss Lian says so, it makes me feel even more ashamed. I won’t persuade you anymore!”

Then she sighed softly, and added: “However, the matter did happen. Since those people were willing to do such a thing, they can’t complain that Miss Lian is still angry. Our family’s master said that, if Miss Lian is unwilling, the slave contract of Hua Jin Tao could be given to Miss Lian. From now on, she will be the slave of Miss Lian’s family and Miss Lian can treat her however she likes.”

The implication was that they were willing to hand over the culprit, Hua Jin Tao into her hands and she could get revenge as she liked.

Lian Fang Zhou raised her head in disbelief and stared at Madam Wang.

Madam Wang, thinking that she had hooked her, smiled secretly in delight and said: “If Miss Lian has no objection, I will ask someone to take the slave contract to Miss Lian tomorrow!”